AMD Radeon HD 8850M vs Intel Arc A380 Comparison

Intel Arc A380 and AMD Radeon HD 8850M occupy very different corners of the GPU landscape. The recorded data shows a single head-to-head benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL, where the Intel Arc A380 delivers a score of 38,224 against the AMD Radeon HD 8850M's 7,447. That is a 413.3% advantage for the Intel part, a decisive margin that frames the entire comparison. The Arc A380 also sits at the 44th percentile of all GPUs in the database with an average benchmark score of 8,558, while the Radeon HD 8850M sits at the 40th percentile with an average score of 7,447. These are not close competitors in raw compute performance, but the architecture gap between a 2022 Alchemist part and a 2013 GCN 1.0 mobile chip explains why.

Where Each One Wins

The Intel Arc A380 wins in every measurable category where both parts have recorded data. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 38,224 dwarfs the Radeon HD 8850M's 7,447, a 413.3% lead. This is not a subtle difference; it is a generational chasm. The Arc A380's compute throughput, listed at 4.198 TFLOPS FP32, is more than five times the Radeon's 800.0 GFLOPS FP32. Texture rate tells a similar story: 131.2 GTexel/s versus 25.00 GTexel/s. Pixel rate is 65.60 GPixel/s versus 10.00 GPixel/s. Every raw throughput metric in the database favors the Intel card by a wide margin.

The Radeon HD 8850M has no benchmark wins in the recorded data. Its only entry is the Geekbench OpenCL score of 7,447, which places it near the Intel UHD Graphics 750 (7,441, a 0.1% delta) and AMD Radeon R7 350 (7,425, a 0.3% delta). It trails the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 by 0.3% in average score, a negligible difference, but that is the extent of its competitive reach. The Arc A380, by contrast, sits within 1.4% of the AMD Radeon 880M and 1.2% of the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 in average score, meaning it trades blows with much more recent hardware.

For use-case split, the data points to the Arc A380 as the choice for any OpenCL compute workload. The Radeon HD 8850M's 2 GB GDDR5 memory with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth is a hard ceiling, whereas the Arc A380's 6 GB GDDR6 at 186.0 GB/s provides over three times the bandwidth. The Arc A380 also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6, while the Radeon HD 8850M is limited to DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. Modern API support alone shifts the practical advantage to the Intel part for current software.

Architecture Differences

The Intel Arc A380 is built on the DG2-128 chip using the Xe-HPG architecture, fabricated on a 6 nm process at TSMC. It packs 7,200 million transistors into a 157 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 45.9M per mm². The AMD Radeon HD 8850M uses the Venus chip with GCN 1.0 architecture, built on a 28 nm process, also at TSMC. It contains 1,500 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, a density of 12.2M per mm². The process node difference alone, 6 nm versus 28 nm, explains much of the performance gap.

Clock speeds reinforce the architectural gap. The Arc A380 runs at a base of 2000 MHz and boosts to 2050 MHz, with memory clocked at 1937 MHz (15.5 Gbps effective). The Radeon HD 8850M runs at a base of 575 MHz and boosts to 625 MHz, with memory at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective). The Arc A380's boost clock is more than three times the Radeon's boost clock. That is not a tweak; it is a different era of silicon.

Compute resources differ substantially. The Arc A380 has 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and 8 ray tracing cores. The Radeon HD 8850M has 640 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 16 ROPs, with no ray tracing cores listed. The Arc A380's FP32 throughput of 4.198 TFLOPS is over five times the Radeon's 800.0 GFLOPS. The Arc A380 also lists FP16 performance at 8.397 TFLOPS (2:1), while the Radeon HD 8850M has no FP16 entry in the database.

Memory architecture is another clear divider. The Arc A380 uses 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 96-bit bus, delivering 186.0 GB/s. The Radeon HD 8850M uses 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 64.00 GB/s. Even with a narrower bus, the Arc A380 achieves nearly triple the bandwidth due to much faster memory clocks. The bus interface also differs: PCIe 4.0 x8 for the Arc A380 versus PCIe 3.0 x16 for the Radeon HD 8850M. The Radeon's wider bus does not compensate for its older standard.

Feature support separates them further. The Arc A380 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6, plus hardware ray tracing via its 8 RT cores. The Radeon HD 8850M supports DirectX 12 (11_1), Vulkan 1.2.170, and OpenGL 4.6, with no ray tracing capability. The Arc A380 also offers display outputs including 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 2.0, while the Radeon HD 8850M has no display outputs listed in the database, consistent with its mobile-oriented design. The Arc A380 is a dual-slot card with a 75 W TDP and a 1x 8-pin power connector, requiring a 250 W suggested PSU. The Radeon HD 8850M has no TDP, slot width, or power connector data recorded.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous. The Intel Arc A380 outperforms the AMD Radeon HD 8850M by 413.3% in the only shared benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL. It offers over five times the FP32 compute, more than three times the memory bandwidth, double the VRAM capacity, and modern API support including ray tracing. The Radeon HD 8850M's average benchmark score of 7,447 places it near integrated graphics like the Intel UHD Graphics 750 (7,441) and entry-level discrete parts like the AMD Radeon R7 350 (7,425). The Arc A380's average score of 8,558 places it near the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (8,458) and AMD Radeon 880M (8,436), a much more capable tier.

Who should pick the Radeon HD 8850M? Only someone constrained by legacy hardware compatibility. It is an end-of-life mobile GPU from 2013 with no modern feature set. The database shows no scenario where it wins a benchmark against the Arc A380. Its only realistic role is in older systems where the Arc A380 cannot physically fit or is not supported. The Arc A380, also end-of-life, is the clear choice for any workload that can use it. Its 44th percentile standing across all GPUs, combined with its nearest rivals being recent parts, indicates it remains relevant for light gaming and compute tasks. The Radeon HD 8850M's 40th percentile standing reflects its age and limited capabilities.

The verdict is simple: the Intel Arc A380 is the superior product in every recorded metric. The Radeon HD 8850M is a historical artifact, not a competitor.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the Intel Arc A380 than the AMD Radeon HD 8850M in OpenCL?

A: The Arc A380 scores 38,224 in Geekbench OpenCL, while the Radeon HD 8850M scores 7,447. That is a 413.3% lead for the Intel card.

Q: What are the memory specifications of each GPU?

A: The Arc A380 has 6 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 96-bit bus with 186.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon HD 8850M has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon HD 8850M support ray tracing?

A: No. The database lists no ray tracing cores for the Radeon HD 8850M, while the Intel Arc A380 has 8 RT cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) with Vulkan 1.4.

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare to other GPUs in the database?

A: The Arc A380 averages 8,558, close to the AMD FirePro W5170M (8,595, a 0.4% delta) and AMD Radeon HD 8870M (8,462, a 1.1% delta). The Radeon HD 8850M averages 7,447, near the Intel UHD Graphics 750 (7,441, a 0.1% delta) and AMD Radeon R7 350 (7,425, a 0.3% delta).

Q: What process nodes are used in each GPU?

A: The Intel Arc A380 uses TSMC's 6 nm process with 7,200 million transistors on a 157 mm² die. The AMD Radeon HD 8850M uses TSMC's 28 nm process with 1,500 million transistors on a 123 mm² die.

Q: Which GPU has higher texture and pixel rates?

A: The Arc A380 has a texture rate of 131.2 GTexel/s and a pixel rate of 65.60 GPixel/s. The Radeon HD 8850M has a texture rate of 25.00 GTexel/s and a pixel rate of 10.00 GPixel/s.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison in the database is Geekbench OpenCL. The Intel Arc A380 scores 38,224, and the AMD Radeon HD 8850M scores 7,447. The delta is 413.3% in favor of the Arc A380. That is the entire head-to-head dataset, and it is decisive.

To understand why, look at the underlying compute metrics. The Arc A380 delivers 4.198 TFLOPS FP32, while the Radeon HD 8850M delivers 800.0 GFLOPS. The Arc A380's shading units number 1,024, and its TMUs number 64, with 32 ROPs and 8 RT cores. The Radeon HD 8850M's shading units number 640, with 40 TMUs and 16 ROPs, with no RT cores. Pixel rate is 65.60 GPixel/s for the Intel card and 10.00 GPixel/s for the AMD card. Texture rate is 131.2 GTexel/s for the Intel card and 25.00 GTexel/s for the AMD card.

The Arc A380's memory subsystem is also far ahead. Its 6 GB GDDR6 at 1937 MHz (15.5 Gbps effective) yields 186.0 GB/s. The Radeon HD 8850M's 2 GB GDDR5 at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) yields 64.00 GB/s. Even though the Radeon has a wider 128-bit bus versus the Arc's 96-bit bus, the Arc's faster memory and newer type produce nearly three times the bandwidth.

Clock speeds are equally lopsided. The Arc A380 bases at 2000 MHz and boosts to 2050 MHz. The Radeon HD 8850M bases at 575 MHz and boosts to 625 MHz. The Arc's boost clock is over three times higher, which directly feeds its higher FP32 and texture throughput.

The Radeon HD 8850M's only recorded benchmark is Geekbench OpenCL at 7,447. Its nearest rivals include the Intel UHD Graphics 750 at 7,441 (a 0.1% delta) and the AMD Radeon R7 350 at 7,425 (a 0.3% delta). The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 sits 0.3% above it at 7,472, and the Intel Arc A310 sits 1.4% above at 7,550. These numbers place the Radeon HD 8850M in the company of integrated and low-end discrete GPUs, not modern dedicated cards.

The Arc A380's nearest rivals are more modern. The AMD FirePro W5170M averages 8,595, just 0.4% above the Arc's 8,558. The AMD Radeon HD 8870M averages 8,462, a 1.1% gap. The NVIDIA GeForce MX330 averages 8,458, a 1.2% gap. The AMD Radeon 880M averages 8,436, a 1.4% gap. These are all within a couple of percent of the Arc A380, indicating it performs in line with recent mid-range mobile and entry-level desktop parts.

The connectivity and feature differences reinforce the benchmark results. The Arc A380 uses PCIe 4.0 x8, supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6, and has RT cores. The Radeon HD 8850M uses PCIe 3.0 x16, supports DirectX 12 (11_1), Vulkan 1.2.170, and OpenGL 4.6, and has no RT cores. The Arc A380 also has a 75 W TDP and a 1x 8-pin power connector with a 250 W suggested PSU, while the Radeon HD 8850M has no power data recorded.

In every measurable way, the Intel Arc A380 is the stronger GPU. The Radeon HD 8850M is a legacy part that cannot match the Arc's compute, memory, or feature set. The 413.3% OpenCL delta is not an outlier; it is the expected result of comparing a 2022 6 nm GPU with a 2013 28 nm GPU. The database records only one head-to-head, but the supporting metrics make the outcome clear.